Archives

A Midwife’s Memoir by Carol Duncombe

Feb13

Fascinating

A Midwife’s Memoir by Carol Duncombe is a fascinating account of the author’s life as a midwife of over forty five years.

Medical advances mean that some things have changed but much remains the same – we all want to be looked after by a caring midwife and we want a healthy mum and baby outcome.

Carol Duncombe has worked in a hospital and the community. She has many tales to tell – some are extremely funny, some are desperately sad. Each birth is unique.

The book is written in a very engaging style. I really ‘felt’ like I ‘knew’ Carol Duncombe by the end of the book. I am looking forward to reading her sequel.

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Don’t Worry He Doesn’t Bite by Liam Mulvin

Feb3

Highly Amusing

Don’t Worry He Doesn’t Bite by Liam Mulvin is a highly amusing account of a West Country postman and the people and places he has encountered over the years.

Each story is a bitesize chunk of just a single page. I enjoyed all the stories, some definitely had me laughing out loud, and the rest raised a chuckle.

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Always Remember Your Name by Andra and Tatiana Bucci

Jan18

In Memory Of The Six Million

Always Remember Your Name by Andra and Tatiana Bucci, translated by Ann Goldstein is a powerful true account of the sisters’ survival as children in Auschwitz.

Tatiana was born in 1937 and Andra in 1939 to Catholic Jewish parents in Italy. They entered Auschwitz with their mother on April 4th 1944 and remained their until liberated by the Russian army on January 27th 1945.

The sisters’ story is one of survival. Separated from their mother on arrival, they lived in the kinderblock. To this day they do not know why they were spared the fate of so many children who were sent to the gas chambers on arrival at Auschwitz. They wondered if it was because the Nazis believed them to be twins. “There on the ramp our fate was sealed.” It is impossible for us to imagine the horrors they faced but as young children do, they ‘normalised’ what they saw. “Even the idea of ‘going out through the chimney’ seems normal to us.”

Following Auschwitz the sisters spent time in an orphanage in Prague before entering Lingfield House near London in April 1946. This was a home for Jewish children who had survived. Here the sisters received kindness and home comforts for the first time in years.

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Oh William by Elizabeth Strout

Dec27

Exploring Relationships

Oh William by Elizabeth Strout is an epic contemporary read that consumes from the start. It is the third book in the Amgash series but can be read as a stand-alone.

The book is written in the first person as we learn about a life and a relationship with an ex-husband. Although their relationship ended years ago, their friendship remained and they support each other through all the seasons of life. William, in his later years, is very dependent on his ex-wife to keep his loneliness away.

We hear about the highs and lows of life. There is also a search for roots. We all want to know where we come from and how we fit in within the family.

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